Organizations that must necessarily mail a large number of pieces to all the addresses within an address file, utilize bulk mail rates in order to achieve cost savings. Typically, bulk mail rates are almost 50 percent less than first class rates. However in order to qualify for such rates, the organization doing the mailing must separate the pieces of mail according to a number of predetermined criteria. The bundle criteria presently utilized by the Post Office are: five digit zipcode; city designation (for multi- zipcode cities); sectional designations (typically the first three digits of the zipcode); state designations; and a mixed state bundle containing all the pieces not falling into previous bundles. For each ten or more pieces falling within each of the previously recited criteria for third class mailing, or for each six or more pieces falling within the previously set forth criteria for second class mailing, a separate bundle is defined. The five digit zipcode designation criteria takes precedence over the others, and then, in order, the city designation, sectional designation, and state designation.
The bundles that are transmitted to the Post Office to qualify for the bulk mail rate must comprise, in total, at least 200 pieces. Also, each bundle must have a sticker on the first piece thereof indicating which of the criteria set forth above it corresponds to. If the bundle is one containing all pieces having the same five digit zipcode, then a sticker with the indicia "D" thereon is applied to the first piece. Where all the pieces in the bundle have the same city, sectional, or state designation, the first piece has a sticker with the indicia "C", "3", or "S", respectively. The mixed state bundle typically has no indicating sticker. Further, if there are 50 or more pieces within any bundle, then that bundle even a better rate.
Prior to the invention, separation of pieces of mail into bulk mail bundles has typically been performed manually. After labels have been applied to the mail (which labels contain each of the necessary designations to determine which bulk mail criteria they fall into), the pieces are manually sorted. Another common technique has been to manually determine what bundle each piece goes into, and code each address record as such so that a computer printed address labels ultimately appear in bulk mail sequence. One procedure typical of this approach is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,117,975. Prior to the invention, no procedure has been provided that allows automatic determination of bulk mail sequence from entries in a random address file, or the existence of a mail list pre-sorted to bulk mail sequence. The invention provides such a method and list.
According to the present invention, a method is provided for automatically producing a bulk mail sorted list of address labels utilizing a computer and a printer. According to the method of the invention, the address file is automatically acted upon so that the necessary sorting to bulk mail sequence is provided, and then the computer automatically controls the printer to print a sequence of labels wherein all the labels within a given bundle are in sequence, with a separator disposed between labels in different bundles. The separator bundle typically will have thereon indicia indicating what type of bundle the following bundle is (e.g. a "D" bundle, etc.), and also preferably has an indication of the number of pieces in the previous bundle, particularly where this number is 50 or greater so that the operator may be sure to take advantage of the additional discount provided for bundles with 50 or more pieces. The labels are applied to "envelopes" containing the material to be mailed, and the pieces within each bundle are affixed together with the appropriate sticker (e.g. "D") applied to the first piece in the bundle.
The invention also contemplates a direct mail list having more than 200 address entries, the list in order by bundle (that is presorted according to bundle), with appropriate indicators provided at divisions between bundles.
It is the primary object of the present invention to automatically effect the sorting and printing of labels in bulk mail sequence, of address entries in a random address file. This and other objects of the invention will become clear from an inspection of the detailed description of the invention, and from the appended claims.